The Temple of Baalat Gebal, the "Lady of Byblos"

The city of Byblos is one of the oldest cities in the world, having been
inhabited continuously since Neolithic times more than 7000 years ago. It is located
in today's Lebanon, about 35 km north of Beirut. In ancient times it was an
important sea port from which the famous cedar trees of Lebanon were exported to Egypt in
exchange for papyrus, ivory, ebony and gold. Trade goods from as early as Egypt's
2nd dynasty have been found there. Byblos is also noteworthy as the place where the
linear alphabet was invented. This became the basis for the modern alphabet that we
use today.

The local goddess of Byblos was Asarte, whose spheres of influence
included war, protection, love and fertility. She was known as the Baalat Gebal, the
"Lady of Byblos." A beautiful temple overlooking the blue waters of the
Mediterranean Sea was built in Her honor around 2700 BCE. The Baalat Gebal was also
patroness of the shipmasters, which was appropriate for such an important shipping port as
Byblos. Early trading connections between Egypt and Syria led to the identification
of the two goddesses with each other. Like Asarte, Het-Hert was patroness of
shipping, as well as mistress of women, fertility, and foreign countires. During Egypt's
12th Dynasty Byblos became an Egyptian dependency, paving the way for Astarte to be
welcomed into the Egyptian pantheon as an Eye of Ra, protecting the King's chariot in
battle.

The Temple of Obelisks at Byblos

The temple of the Baalat Gebal with its nearby sacred pool was in use
for over 2000 years, until it was replaced with a Roman style building during the Roman
Era. As early as the 5th and 6th Dynasties, Egyptian kings sent vases and other objects as
gifts to the temple, with the royal names inscribed in hieroglyphs. At the nearby Temple
of Obelisks, hieroglyphs were also engraved on an obelisk erected in honor of the Lady of
Byblos. This site has yielded over 1300 votive offerings, including many small obelisks,
faience cats, hippopotami, dwarfs, images of Taweret, and human figures covered with gold
leaf.